The fandom that has developed in the wake of "Friendship is Magic" is largely something that I cherish and make a part of my daily life. I would like to consider myself actively involved in the community, spending a lot of time surfing Equestria Daily, commenting on various excerpts of pony news, talking to a lot of bronies both on DeviantArt and outside the site, and even lending my hand to a pony-related project or two. I love chatting to the many unique individuals who all have their own reasons for adoring the show, and I find it to be a thoroughly engaging experience to converse with other people of a similar mindset to myself. I have seen excellent remixes and mash-ups of the songs and scenes from the show and have been, frankly, amazed by the fan-made content. Only today did I see a custom Pinkie animation made by one very talented individual who should be offered a part animating on the show right away. I am also aware that some fans like the show, but prefer the fan community to the episodes themselves, and this is perfectly understandable and respectable: being part of a movement so special and rapid in its growth is a mesmerising experience. All things suggest that the fandom that has spawned from "Friendship is Magic" is something that none of us should be ashamed to be a part of. And, until recently, that has been the case.

But a few things have come up in recent times amongst certain fans that have started to frustrate me. Naturally, I'm no stranger to giving my critical opinion about something, and as a result certain aspects of the fandom that have made themselves apparent to me recently have been on the tip of my tongue, ready to be challenged. I debated over whether or not I should release this article, for the simple fact that it could offend some fans. And whilst I may still be in danger of offending a few people  I believe the comments that I receive may not be entirely positive  with any luck the arguments that I will project shall be credible, ensuring that, although disagreements may arise, my opinion will not be lost in a tempest of hate. I will also make the vow that if anyone does disagree with me, I will take the time to carefully read through any comments given and offer a swift, effective rebuttal.

First and foremost, I would like to tackle the 'issue' of Princess Luna. This first came into my line of sight throughout Season 1, when people began obsessing over her character, demanding that she make larger appearances as quickly as possible. When Season 2's first episode aired and there was, of course, an absence of Luna, some people were mortified. Straight away on the Livestreams there were people commenting that Luna's absence was unforgivable, and that it was an absolute necessity that Luna appear in episode 2. Unfortunately for them, when episode 2 came around there was no Luna, and this just added fuel to the fire. I've seen people, who will remain anonymous, hurling insults in every direction because of this. Some blame Hasbro: they fail to realise that Hasbro is a corporate entity that owns the rights to the My Little Pony franchise and are not, in fact, the people who write the show. Those with a little more sense attack the writers of the show, although they conveniently forget that the season premiere, "The Return of Harmony", was written during Season 1, before the writers had any idea that the fans would go crazy for Luna.

Some say it is inexcusable that Luna was not in the throne-room during Princess Celestia's speech, but I always return with the same argument: what would Luna have actually added to the story? Get beyond the fact that some fans are actively wanking themselves off to her day-in and day-out, and try and approach this from a rational standpoint. Would Luna have changed the plot? The answer is no. Would Luna's inclusion have altered the information that Twilight and the gang received from Celestia? The answer is no. Her inclusion would have merely been to concur with Celestia's points, giving the fans something to scream about. But that is hardly a respectable basis for putting her in the episode, especially as her role would once again be so minor it would almost be insulting. A lot of people felt that during the end of Episode 2 that Luna wasn't there in the big Star Wars climax is unacceptable. I find it amusing that, had Luna been present during this one-minute scene, fans would likely have complained that she wasn't getting enough screen-time.

I want to clear something up before I continue. I do not hate Luna. I can see why the fandom has gone crazy for her character. I put it down to two things: the first is, naturally, her aesthetic appeal, as her design is rather lovely. Secondly, people love Luna simply for the fact that she is such an enigma. Because nobody knows anything major about Luna's personality, people are free to come up with whatever conclusions they want with her. If one was to make Rainbow Dash all shy and introverted, they would be accused of breaking her character; with Luna, as there is no established personality bar those two or so lines of dialogue, people get ideas in their heads and run with them.

Although I am not opposed to fans doing this, it does annoy me that people won't shut up about her. Luna is a minor character; barely more than a background pony. But people still demand that she make massive appearances in the episodes. At the time of writing it has just been revealed that the third episode will be airing on October 15th. I thought it would be interesting to see what people's thoughts and feelings about it were, and decided to search for the word 'Luna' on one topic about it and see how many I could find. As I expected, more people than I would care to count were obsessing over the notion that Luna might be in the next episode. Funnily enough, I actually care more about the mane six and how they develop, not Luna. The inevitable outcome of when Luna eventually does have some screen-time in an episode is that there is a possibility that fans will be disappointed with what the writers do with her. This is because, as said previously, people have their own notions as to what Luna is like. Rather than remaining neutral on the subject, a lot of individuals have said exactly how Luna should behave and written her into the fandom in very particular ways. What if Luna in the show doesn't meet these expectations? Will people actually be able to cope with the fact that Luna just might not be all that interesting?

I dislike that the writers have been put into a difficult position trying to satisfy fans with this character. If people don't like what they see with Luna, I can predict right now that there will be comments like, "Oh no, they ruined Luna!". No, I'm afraid; the fandom are responsible for 'ruining' Luna by elevating her to a God-like position. Again, I will make the point that I don't dislike Luna, and I would be happy for her to appear in the show for the right reasons. But whatever way you look at it, Luna has become something of a curse now; if she only appears for one episode, some fans will be satisfied, but a lot will want more. If the writers don't make her character as the countless fanfictions and fans have dictated, it could have a negative backlash on the community, and that is in no way the fault of the writers. Luna will be excellently written, even if she doesn't match what certain fans have decided of her.

It's not just Luna who has been elevated to ridiculous proportions as well. Before resuming, let me make myself clear: I have nothing against a fascination with background ponies, whether they be Berry Punch, Derpy or anypony. The fandom have the right to obsess over these characters and even, in their own minds, create fictional personalities for these characters. I would also like to make it known that I am not opposed to fanfictions, including shipping or clopfics; if people want to make these then it is their creative prerogative to do so. What I am against, however, is when people take it one step further. In my mind, the fandom and the canon of the show are two very different things. If in a fanfiction an individual chooses to pair together Twilight and Applejack in one of their stories, that's fine; if the same individual tries to suggest that the relationship exists in the show itself, that is where I must draw the line.

"Friendship is Magic" is designed for kids. I understand that it has a large appeal to older fans, but that's not through adult content; it is through sharp writing, witty references and the overall high-quality of the show. I personally get annoyed when I see people watch an episode and then come out with outrageous comments that there were lots of flirty moments between the characters. This is incorrect, trying to find something in the show that quite simply isn't there, and it detracts from the purity of the show. I've seen people who have said that in Episode 2 of Season 2, Rarity and Twilight are totally hitting on one another. Excuse me for missing that: I was too busy entertaining the notion that the animation is innocently cute and fun for all ages, not full of hidden, subliminal smut. The point that I'm making is that fanfiction and the mass consensus of the fandom doesn't make something true in the context of the show. Saying that you want to write a story where Rainbow Dash is a lesbian is fine, but saying that Rainbow Dash is a lesbian in the show is not. Find me some damn evidence in the show that suggests this, or any of the other bizarre sexual combinations that people come up with. And no, I won't be accepting Dash's friendship with Gilda as evidence.

Lyra and Bon-Bon are a typical example of this little dilemma. These two beautiful ponies are often animated standing together or silently talking in the background. Some people make the assumption that these two ponies are lesbians. This is, quite simply, hard for me to accept. As I have said, you have the right as a fan to write these two ponies as lesbians, but you can't argue that in the show itself they are lesbians. What evidence is there for such a suggestion? That they're animated hanging around together a few times? Despite the fact that this is clearly a quick and easy method of animating background ponies, by often designing the same ones together in Flash, why can't people assume that they're best friends instead? If there was some dialogue between the characters where they say that they live together or something, then this would make the assumption more credible; as it stands, there is not one piece of conclusive evidence to add credence to the lesbian argument. It has gotten to the point that if someone challenged the notion that these characters are lesbians, and, oh...I don't know...wrote a fanfic with Lyra and Big Macintosh, it would likely get detractors saying that they're breaking the character. It's a shame that there is no 'character' to break, merely a cute design that people have chosen to give names, personalities and so on to. I'm afraid that that still doesn't make a supposed relationship between these ponies canon to the show.

People are often quick to bring sex into pretty much anything, and so the way in which a lot of these ponies have been put into a sexual position is hardly surprising. But to me, it does ruin the purity of the show somewhat. The amount of people who I've seen saying that they want to see some sort of gesture, like Lyra and Bon-Bon kissing in an actual episode, is insane and ignorant to the fact that the show isn't intended for the adult audience that it has garnered. It's the same logic that causes people to say things like: "I want to see Doctor Whooves get into a Tardis in the background of one episode". Do people not understand that the moment the shows creators start acknowledging these things as canon, the fascination would die out? If Luna had appeared in every episode of Season 1, I can guarantee that the interest behind her character would be far less prominent. If they did make some overt brony-reference, like Magneto swooping through the clouds, it would turn the show into a parody of itself and dilute the content. The fun is in the fandom making these observations externally to the show; "Friendship is Magic" itself doesn't need to blatantly advertise them to appease bronies.

I am an enormous fan of the show and the fandom, but I cannot apologise to anyone who cannot distinguish between the fandom and the canon of the show. Of course the fandom is, generally, an excellent group of people to be around, providing they're not exploring the darker sides of the fiction, such as pairing together fillies like Scootaloo and Apple Bloom and having them engage in God-knows-what together. Child pornography is a punishable taboo in modern society; envisioning young fillies together in that way is a contentious issue. Even on DeviantArt there are individuals who 'kidnap' other people's OC ponies and have all sorts of nasty things going on with them. Whilst I am generally tolerant to anything within reason, I just cannot bring myself to jump on board with people who find something sexual in something that really isn't. Imagining the ponies from the show in sexual circumstances is fine, but don't then try and force it down my throat that the relationships exist within the show itself. None of the mane cast have a single sexual bone in their bodies; the only hint at any form of sexuality comes from Spike's crush on Rarity and Rarity's interest in Prince Blueblood. But again, sexuality is not the same as sex, and although these characters might have innocent little crushes on one another, they should be kept that way in the show rather than blown out of proportion.

I hope that nobody is offended by the above; most fans are rational enough to understand that the show doesn't contain a lot of the mature content that some individuals claim, and this article is directed to very specific people rather than the entire community. The fandom will continue to evolve with a mixture of wonderful talent and the occasional inertia that must be weeded out, and it is up to the fans to remain level-headed. I already had to belittle somebody on Equestria Daily who was saying that he was in tears when he found out that a new episode with Luna won't be airing next week: I can understand people investing enormous amounts of time in "Friendship is Magic", but people need to learn when to accept that the show and the fandom, although juxtaposed, are very different entities. Stop whining about Luna after she has already been confirmed for the upcoming season simply because you personally hyped her up too much, stop trying to find evidence in a kids show for sexual reference-points, and, more importantly, continue to keep creating wonderful fiction...as long as you can remember that it is precisely that.

This isn't strictly a review. DeviantArt only gives a tiny word limit for the name of a deviation, and ideally I would call this, "Dissent towards certain aspects of the Brony community'', or something similar. Nevertheless, here it is.

I will reply constructively to any comments and remain as objective as possible. If you would like to try and explain to me why some people believe in some of the above and wish to present evidence, go for it. I'd be happy to read it.

Thank you for addressing the more obsessive and darker sides of this fandom.MLP is a children's show but people are free to think what they want as long as they remember no to over do things example being trying to find sexual references and such

Huh, this reads differently knowing what happened later. I don't think it held up too well with all the fanservice in the show itself (and I don't mean boobs, I mean gags and deliberate nods, like Lyra and Bonbon having each other's cutie marks as saddle bag badges) and how knowledge the staff is about fanon.

In regards to Luna, I'll bet you're well aware of the immediate outcry this season's finale is receiving for so far not showing us any footage of the Mistress of the Night.

Thankfully, I am a fan who will bide my time until the episode actually premieres or comes close to instead of jumping to rash conclusions about her exclusion.

Now I'll still immensely enjoy the two-parter without her presence, but after everything is said and done, I'll still be a bit perplexed if they did decide to exclude her, considering that this is a royal wedding of all things.

To once again quote my thoughts, what's the point of giving a character a new look and a defining character if you're just going to shaft it for a while, especially for such a significant ceremony as this one.

I suppose the writers can do whatever they want. While Luna is probably a big thought on the mind of the fandom, the writers are probably less inclined to be thinking about her. If she doesn't show up, it won't in any way bother me. If she does appear, that's cool. I suppose I'm indifferent to the entire thing. After all is said and done, it's only Luna.

Well to be fair, those that are absolutely cuckoo for Luna bring up that her status kind of requires her to be present and accounted for. This isn't the Grand Galloping Gala. Another winged unicorn related to both of them is about to be betrothed. This sort of makes the phrase of "everypony whose anypony will be there" seem like false advertising. This is a bit of a stretch, but I'm leaning towards her barging in so that she can reveal Cadence's dark secret. I mean, it does strike me as being odd and strange that Celestia didn't invite her own sibling that has been gone for far too long to the wedding. I'm also expecting the studio to send out a response to explain why they excluded her, even if it's still too early to tell, just for fans to take a chill pill.

Yup! I completely agree! Yeah, I can understand fannism over Luna. When I even hear mention of my favorite character, be it on a show or not, I completely freak out. I know to keep that to myself though; it's my opinion that that character is awesome, and to want to have them be deified in canon would be like publishing your dreams. It's boring, quite frankly.

I don't get LyraxBonBon. I just don't get it. Those ponies are seen talking together in the background often, so many people incorrectly assume that they must then have a sexual relationship. Yes, in fanfiction there are often lesbian relationships, mainly because there are much more mares than stallions. Can't two ponies just be friends??

You did a great job of explaining why these beliefs are simply based on fannism, and it isn't any more insulting than someone saying, "That's ridiculous." Hooray!

One of the things I like about the character of Luna is that there's simply so much potential for good stories with her character.

An ancient Princess, who once rules the night of Equestria, rises up to control the whole word and get stopped and banished by her sister for 1000 years. Returns and is thwarted by the main characters to be returned to normal.

There are so many things they could do with that.

What was it like on the moon for 1000 years? What's the relationship between the two sisters now that she has returned? What was the nature of the character of Nightmare Moon? Was it an evil alter-ego? Was turning evil a conscious choice rather than being possessed by some evil force? And if not, where did the evil force come from?

And that's just off the top of my head, who knows what good stuff an experienced writer could come up with.

I agree with you so much. While in my fic I have not actually shown my stance on Lyra and Bon Bon's relationship (which is simply best friends in the fic), while corresponding with my editor, I remember him saying that 'Lyra x Bon Bon is pretty much canon'. Kind of exactly what you're talking about what people shouldn't be doing. Lol.And that must have taken a while to write just for this purpose. Well done.

It's rather annoying. She drinks punch in what, one episode? And it's not even alcoholic. I think the general fascination with background ponies is somewhat irksome, especially when some people say they prefer them to the main cast. Personally, I'm not even a big fan of Berry's design.

It could well be that the reason Lyra and Bon-Bon are so often seen together is one vast coincidence; it's like how people assume Thomson and Thompson from Herge's Tintin are twins because they look alike and their names sound alike when they actually don't have anything much in common other than a vague similarity to one another and being Belgian police officers. It might even be that neither one actually knows the other pony's name and refers to the other by a vague description.

Some people are dumb and give the fandom a bad name. Wanting Lyra and Bon-Bon to do something sexual in the background is perverse. Every fandom is composed of different people, some of those people just happen to be pervs, and those people give certain fandoms bad names (i.e. furries)

I certainly don't think it helps our cause. The fact of the matter is that ponies are getting more and more popular by the day and more people are noticing bronies. It doesn't look good if external viewers see us as a bunch of sex-starved adults. There is a lot of stuff out there that makes us look like a talented bunch, such as the remixes and the custom plushies, and it's this sort of stuff that we should be known for. Not the smut.

I agree with the Luna thing, however, and correct me if I read this wrong...

...but wherever there is humanization, and humanized characters, there will be shipping. It's just fact.

I also agree that all the Cupcakes, Rule34, and all of the stuff like that is just unnecessary and shows that people can be as sick as they want to be.

As a former fan of the MLP Rule34, I know the mindset. However, I recently realized that "Dude, it's ponies, you sick freak. Delete now!" I now realize that it's fans like that that give the MLP Fanbase a bad name.

But going back to the Lyra/Bon Bon thing, it's just inevitable. I'm a fan of fanfiction, and Lyra/Bon Bon is one of my favorite ships. But is being a show for little girls really escape it from giving the same treatment as say, a show like Danny Phantom or Avatar: The Last Airbender? Yeah, those shows were targeted more towards older audiences, but in a show like MLP where a percentage of the fanbase are the exact same fans who liked the prior mentioned shows, it's expectant.

The little kids who watch this show don't go on the internet for fanfiction or fanart, they go on to check out Hub.com and play the recent My Little Pony game.

I'm sorry if I sound prude or got the entire mass of your review/tangent completely wrong in its core meaning, but its just expected that you're gonna get things like this.

PS: Cupcakes...never read it...but it's existence alone is an example of the levels of disgust fans would go. *shakes head disappointingly*

Hey, with no disrespect to you my good fellow, I believe you may have missed part of the point of my article. I'm no saying that shipping or fanfiction is bad; it is what makes the community, and people have the right to imagine these characters in any situation they so choose. People have creative control when they write to write -anything-, so if somebody wishes to ship characters together that's fine.

My argument is that some people then try and force these shipping relationships on the show, and that's the important point that I'm trying to raise. Shipping is fine, because it is fictional and the work of the author of a particular fanfiction or image. But it's when people say that these shipping relationships exist in the show, such as people genuinely believing that AJ and Rainbow Dash are together, or that Lyra and Bon-Bon are lesbians in the show that I have to find issue. This is simply because although people say things like, "Well Lyra and Bon-Bon are standing together sometimes, so they might be lesbians" there is simply no evidence to suggest that they are at all. And that is, primarily, for two reasons: firstly, homosexuality, or indeed, any overt sexuality at all, is absent from the show, and secondly because the show is designed for kids and thus these shipping relationships just simply do not exist in the subject matter.

I hope that clears up where I stand. I don't mind shipping or Rule34 particularly, as long as people can understand that what they're writing and drawing isn't in the show itself; it is purely a machination of their own minds.

This just in to all you Luna fans who are reading this review: You'll be happy to know that Luna is scheduled to appear in an episode. After the third episode hits the screen, Luna will be featured in a starring role in the episode titled "Luna Eclipsed".

Not much of the details has been made revealed in regards to that episode, but it relates to an event called "Nightmare Night" though I'm not really sure if it's a Halloween special considering there will be another Saturday before the month is over.

But I merely post this on here to let you know that you don't need to get frantic over when Luna is showing up. If you guys can just wait just a couple more weeks by then, I can assure you that Luna's appearance will certainly be worth the wait. I'm not going to go all crazy about Luna's appearance when it comes because all I care about is two qualities: A great story and unforgettable character moments.

Of course it is my friend. That's why it wouldn't be a rumor if I didn't say I didn't know much about the episode. I only did it because a bunch of Luna fans had to know that she might come out eventually.

And besides, when I didn't get a response for my critique on your critique I figured I could write something that's related to Luna.

I never got the fan base. I remember about two months ago, I heard about the MLP hype and began watching the show. The show, of course, was fantastic, but I began to get scared when I saw all of these Rainbow Dash-as-a-lesbian things.

Not that I think that people aren't entitled to their own opinions, but it made no sense to me. I wasn't even thinking about sexual things until I saw certain YouTube comments and in a way, it ruined the show for me.

I appreciate your reviews, because you really seem to look deeper into things than most MLP fans, and I feel like I can relate to this. What is the big deal with Luna? Sure, if she shows up, I might give a satisfied smile, but I don't see why people obsess over her.

Anyway, sorry for the enormous comment, I just wanted you to hear how I felt.

I'm sorry to hear that seeing sexual things ruined the show for you. The thing that annoyed me the most about the comments from certain fans was the constant 'cupcakes' references. Any time Pinkie shows up on a video or anything now, there's always someone making a joke about Pinkie being a psychotic murderer who will bake her friends in cupcakes, and, quite frankly, it's getting old. One fanfiction has tarnished Pinkie's character, and I mean to address this in my next article. Keep a look-out for it!

I'm glad that you support my reviews, and by the sounds of it if you've taken the time to read them all you're a brave person x3 I do enjoy going into great depth with these articles, and I love that the fans seem to be giving me mostly positive feedback. The comment was very much appreciated, so don't worry about it being quite long - look down the page and you'll see that some people have written much longer comments x3

I know how you feel regarding the adamant beliefs some fans express for certain characters' sexual orientations. I've been around so many fandoms before this that I've become largely desensitized to these kinds of issues, having often felt like having to jump on other peoples' supposed "absolute" interpretations that present one or the other thing as proof to their own cause. Even if a character is by the large shown to be completely straight and even has a girlfriend, many people are still much more likely to see the true relationship residing in the relationship he has with his best friend, who just so happens to be male. This is actually an interesting reflection to many fandoms in where homosexual relationships seem to be all the more popular than heterosexual ones. Perhaps it is a reflection that the same-sex relationships are somehow more "dangerous", "exciting" or "forbidden" that they are by default more popular than the "safer" option... and damn all of established canon when the fangirl (or boy) mind gets rolling full steam.

But that's just the nature of the beast, and MLP is no different than any other fandom in that regard. People will obsess over much the same things, write about the same things, and fantasize about the same things as any other fandom does, large or small. And there's really nothing one can do about it. You may try to fight one person's perspective (which they likely won't listen to anyway), and then have to consider whether you'll do the same for the 30 other people who come right behind with the exact same ideas. I've done this on occasion, but for the last year or so have decided to just ignore it and be content with my own (in my mind more "correct") interpretations with the attitude "fangirls/boys will be full of bullshit" so as not to waste my resources in getting bent all out of shape over something I can never win over (though I admit, sometimes when faced with a particularly stupid fan, I do get some pleasure out of beating them down with cold logical thought ).

The Luna question? I think you missed out a third possible option: namely she is still Princess Celestia's sister and once more a ruling monarch of Equestria with the duties of handling the moon risings (at least that's what Celestia wanted at the end of episode 2, though confirmation on whether this is something she is already doing cannot be corroborated until she is seen again). That alone I think is already quite a bane on the character. After all, ponies like Lyra and Bon-Bon can comfortably be put in the background with little else explained as they're just normal citizens who happen to live in a fairly small town with likely no more dramatic daily lives than the mane six, Luna is still supposed to be Celestia's equal in the governing of the country. To present a character who is pretty much god-tier the same as Celestia, and then have her basically disappear as if she didn't exist in the first place, can also cause some people to get up in arms about it.

Personally I'm not bothered about Luna's absence, though I'm quite interested in seeing what the writers will do with her come her eventual re-appearance, not only for reasons of seeing such a character again, but also for tying up some loose plot strands. In a similar way I was happy to again see the Elements of Harmony (irrespective of their point in the series) since it at least explained what happened to these hugely powerful magical objects after the pilot episode. The same will be with Luna as I am quite interested in finding out where exactly she has been hiding for - what I gather - the better part of a year. Even if it is for only one episode, at least it helps tying up those loose plot threads that in their own way have also left the door open for fans to start speculating about her fate so extensively since her first appearance.

But yeah, radical fans are in every fandom, and one so large never would have had a chance of escaping them. I'm not bothered about them as their assertions are usually quite obviously the product of overly obsessive imaginations, twisting everything they see as proof that they have unlocked a great hidden message in which they believe so adamantly that it comes to represent the "truth" just the same as how Celestia rises the sun and Twilight Sparke was intentionally named that so as to unsully the words "twilight" and "sparkle" after Stephanie Meyer ruined the connective usage of them in her books.

Wow, I wrote more than I intended. Guess the projected two paragraphs was the actual real product of a feaverished fantasy.

Your comments are always incredibly well thought out and lengthy, so bravo to you! I enjoy that you seem to comment on everything that I write, and I appreciate your input.

I understand that a core part of any fandom is taking things to their extreme. And, as MLP has garnered a lot of older fans, I can understand why people are sexualising the characters, shipping them together and so on. I understand that the absence of Luna in the plot is a potential issue; if they introduce a character it seems strange to then 'write her out' of the narrative. That said, some people seem to accuse the writers of doing this deliberately to spite them, which is just ridiculous. The writers have a plan: by the sounds of the latest rumours, Luna is feared by the people of Ponyville for obvious reasons, so if she had gone into hiding, much like the Zecora situation, her disappearance wouldn't be too hard to believe.

Luna will help tie up some loose plot threads, and that's why I'm happy to see her coming up. I don't care if she's shy, outgoing, mischievious, cautious, sentimental or hot-headed; whatever the writers do with her, I'm sure she'll be great. I'm pretty sure Tabitha St. Germain voiced her in S1E2, so hopefully she'll be returning for the voice.

Excellent ReviewI agree with all the points you brought up, especially those concerning Luna. I am frankly tired of people complaining about her not appearing in the season 2 premier. Don't get me wrong, I'm just as curious as everyone else about her character and I'm anxious to see what they plan to do with her but it's getting a little annoying. Also ,on Lyra and Bon-Bon. I don't mind fanfiction between them but it's when everyone assumes they are a legitimate couple that gets on my nerves. I only wish I could see more work with them just being good friends. I also tire of people constantly pointing out sexual references in episodes. Just last week, I was with a group of friends and we decided to watch a couple of episodes of MLP. Some of them had never seen the show and every 5 seconds they would point out something sexual. It made me mad and slightly embarrassed. I wish people could just sit down and enjoy the show and keep their dirty thoughts to themselves. I want the show to continue just the way it is and I'm afraid the fans are putting too much pressure on it. I can be one of them sometimes (I'm a big Derpy fan and I wouldn't mind letting her have a bit more screen time but I know that won't happen). I love this show and I love being a part of this community. Despite it's problems I wouldn't change a thing.

Oh man, sorry for that rant I had to get it all out. All I can say is I loved this analysis and your reviews of the show and characters. I hope to see more soon.

I think people want to obsess over Luna because she's something to obsess over, if that makes sense. It gives people a pony to go crazy about, because the reality of the situation hasn't yet been revealed. There is every chance that in this season - the rumour is that episode 4 will have Luna in a Halloween-themed episode - Luna will be revealed as being rather different to what some people have envisioned, and I just really hope that people don't go overboard with their complaints if Luna doesn't meet their expectations.

I'm glad that you would rather see Lyra and Bon-Bon as friends rather than a couple. Your friends do sound a little silly having found sexual references in the show; it doesn't need those adult themes to be great.

Thanks for the compliments about the reviews and so on! :3 I'm gonna be writing another one tomorrow most likely, so keep a look-out!

You make a bunch of good points and I pretty much agree with them all.In my opinion, the Lyra and Bon-Bon thing seemed to come about the same way it did with Derpy, where they noticed them doing silly things in the background and just took to them. It's kind of hilarious in retrospect, though I admit I do like how it came out. I ship Lyra and Bon-Bon because the fandom consistently makes them look adorable together.I love this fandom and have come to accept it, both the good and the bad. The only thing about it that I don't get is why everyone makes such a big deal about Cupcakes. Maybe it was the hype that killed it for me, but I didn't find it to be that bad. I guess that shows what my tastes are like huh? XD

I read Cupcakes, and I thought it was pretty terrible, to be honest. It didn't have the shock factor, and I've read stuff that has been far more offensive and inappropriate. In many ways it was actually quite tame ;O

I'm gonna be writing some pretty scathing words about Cupcakes for my next article, so keep an eye out!

THANK YOU!! You have no idea how many times I've had to remind myself that I don't actually hate Luna. I normally don't like to bad mouth people but God Damn Are Her Fans ANNOYING. Pretty much every time I've tried to had a discussion about 'Harmony' the past couple of weeks its been de-railed by people moaning and whining about Luna. Her fans are seriously my least favorite (non offensive) part of this fandom.

On the same token, I love the background ponies but I get very thrown off when people actually say they prefer the background ponies. I'm not trying to pick on her cause I love her to death but Phoe for example, one of the blog ponies on EqD, says Lyra is her favorite pony. Even over the mane 6. I just don't understand how you can prefer a nothing over the heart of the show.

Wow, this post sounds alot more negative then I thought. I really do love this community with all my part and these people don't take away from that love at all.

On a different note: I never gave them a chance until just a few weeks ago but I will admit to enjoying shipping story. To my satisfaction instead of being awkward and creepy like I expected the good one's are actually just very sweet and daaawww-worthy.

The idea of Lyra and Bon-Bon is so ingrained in my mind I actually forget sometimes that its not cannon. I'm still gonna think of them that way but it does make me laugh that their is literally zero evidence to support that interpretation.

Once again thank you for typing this. I think its a message somebronies really need to here.

Mhm, her die-hard fans are often quite frustrating to deal with, especially as all other arguments and rational thought go out the window.

''Wasn't Discord a pretty effective villain?''''NO BECAUSE THERE WAS NO LUNA!''

''Well how about the irony in how much Twilight has changed since the Pilot?''''WHO CARES LUNA SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE!''

Whilst I appreciate that Luna was introduced and so should appear at some point, I think people just need to relax about it and wait for it to happen in its own course.

As for the background ponies, I agree that it becomes irksome when people say they prefer them to the main cast: I can understand maybe liking their designs more, but certainly not as characters. Anyone who says they do can't be watching the show particularly well or absorbing any of its messages.

Although I absolutely love shipping and all that kinda stuff, I absolutely agree with you on a few points. 1. Any and all shipping in the show is purely the imagination of the Bronies watching it. (Though I can dream if I want to )2. If they started acknowledging bronies all the time, it would indeed turn into a parody of itself, or even an adult swim cartoon, this may not be bad, but it will no longer be as pure as it is, and the purity of Equestria is one of the reasons I watch. Its a better world than ours and fun to escape to. So thanks for writing this! Its good that people get to express what they believe.

1. You're absolutely right! Dreaming of situations is fine :32. I'm glad that you approve of the article, and I agree that making the show into a parody with too many cult-references would be a bad idea. The Star Wars reference in the latest episode was great, truly; as long as the referneces are kept to a minimum I'll be happy.